Big Blue View
Can Johnson round out the Giants’ tight end position?
The tight end position is always an interesting one to scout. The prospects who generate the most pre-draft buzz are always the ones who have the most receiving upside — and highlight reel plays.
Tight ends who were primarily used as blockers and were secondary receiving options in their offense tend to be overlooked by the community at large. However, those “do it all” tight ends are often unheralded role players who help a modern 11-personnel offense function.
Penn State’s Theo Johnson is a classic “Y” tight end who certainly passes the NFL’s eye test for a prototypical tight end. He’s big, tall, a good blocker, a capable receiver, and able to line up all over the offensive formation.
The New York Giants have one well-rounded tight in Daniel Bellinger, but their lack of depth at the position has proved to be a liability over the last two seasons. Could Johnson give them another starting caliber tight end?
Prospect: Theo Johnson (84)
Games Watched: vs. Illinois (2023), vs. Iowa (2023), vs. Ohio State (2023), vs. Michigan (2023)
Theo Johnson is a big, tall, powerful, and versatile tight end who contributed all over Penn State’s offense.
Johnson has prototypical size at 6-foot-6, 257 pounds, with evident power throughout his frame, as well as big (and strong) 10-inch hands. He lined up all over Penn State’s offensive formation, from in-line tight end, to wide receiver, to H-back, to running back in an I-formation – and every position in between.
He’s a good blocker, both as an in-line tight end as well as in space. Johnson is able to “lose slowly” against edge defenders and hold his ground or even create movement against off-ball linebackers. He’s also comfortable blocking for screens, and delivers blocks that can send defensive backs reeling.
Johnson clearly has a powerful lower body, which not only generates force for his blocks, but also gives him solid explosiveness. He’s quick into his routes, accelerating hard off the line of scrimmage against zone coverage and forcing coverage players back on their heels. His upper body strength allows him to simply run through attempts to jam him without losing much momentum. Johnson ran a wide variety of routes in Penn State’s offense, and was used as a ball carrier on screen plays, as a checkdown option, and to threaten defenses in the intermediate to deep areas of the field. He also shows solid ball skills at the catch point as well.
Johnson generally does a good job of making himself available as a checkdown target, presenting a good target to the quarterback and attempting to shield defenders from the ball. He’s also able to track and make adjustments to the ball in the air, as well as extend to maximize his catch radius before hauling the ball in securely.
Johnson is a...
